The workers are staging a Black Friday protest in anger at what the GMB trade union call ‘inhuman conditions’ at the company’s warehouses.

Black Friday is one of the biggest online shopping days of the year but workers say they are treated like “robots” in the rush to meet difficult targets to get deliveries out to customers.

Figures from the GMB show Amazon warehouses have been reported to the Health and Safety Executive 602 times since April 2015 and that 600 ambulances have been called to their warehouses in the same time period. Meanwhile GMB members working at Amazon warehouses reveal 87% per cent are in constant or occasional pain due to their workload.

“Similar protests are also being held in Germany, Spain and Poland which I applaud. Global fat cat businesses often try and export bad working practices from one country to another, and the only way to defeat that is with international solidarity.

“When you order a book, headphones or new laptop online, of course you can’t wait for it to arrive but there need to be enough well trained, well paid staff working in safe warehouses to fulfil the orders. Staff can’t be treated as robots.”